Jason Licht has certainly had his fair share of hits and misses during his time as the general manager of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. One of his most notable misses came from trading up into the second round to select FSU kicker Roberto Aguayo back in 2016 — who spent just one year with the team.
Fast forward to 2025, and Licht is being recognized by one NFL reporter for landing two of the biggest bargains of the young free agency period.
Chris Godwin and Haason Reddick Named Two of the Biggest Bargains of 2025 NFL Free Agency
The financial details of moves made in the NFL can often be overlooked with endless ways to dilineate funds of a contract to later years in the deal or void years of the contract.
Well, the finances weren’t overlooked by Carmen Vitali of FOX Sports — who named a pair of Tampa Bay signings as part of her biggest bargains of free agency.
Vitali wrote on the signing of Chris Godwin, “I don’t think it’s a question that the guy who reportedly turned down $20 million more to stay home is the biggest bargain of free agency. Godwin has injury history, yes, but if he can return to form â he averaged 87 receptions, 1,065 yards from 2019 to 2023 â his $22 million average annual value will pale in comparison to the $29 million AAV fellow WR2Â Tee Higgins just got from Cincinnati.”
The mention of Tee Higgins here feels quite relevant. Higgins and Godwin are both widely considered amongst the better second WRs in the league, but their contracts look vastly different.
Godwin’s $66 million over three years is definitely a noticeable step back from Higgins $115 million over four years. Age and Godwin coming off an injury does play a factor in this, but Godwin’s willingness to turn down a significant amount of money from the New England Patriots certainly qualifies this deal as a bargain.
Vitali was equally intrigued by the Bucs signing of Haason Reddick by saying, “Last year was ⦠weird for Reddick. He was the first to say so in his introductory press conference in Tampa. A fresh situation in an established locker room should be a recipe for success for both parties. Reddick is just a year removed from back-to-back Pro Bowls while playing for the Philadelphia Eagles. He had 27 sacks between 2022-2023.”
Prior to the 2024 season, Reddick rattled off four consecutive years of 11+ sacks, which makes the upside of this signing very appealing for the Bucs at this price.
Vitali added, “If Tampa Bay can unlock that Reddick, and he’s playing next to the monsters the Bucs have on the interior of their defensive line (namely, Vita Vea and Calijah Kancey), then Reddick could easily return to form as a double-digit sack artist. It would make his deal absolute peanuts in comparison to others at his position. Otherwise, this year-long chance won’t cost the Bucs anything in the future.”
Other Free Agent Moves by the Bucs
Godwin and Reddick may have been the biggest moves made by the Bucs this free agency, but they still managed to make a handful of other deals.
The Bucs brought back Sterling Shepard and added veteran LB Anthony Walker, OT Charlie Heck, and P Riley Dixon.
Licht has been busy so far this offseason, but with plenty of their available cap spent on these players in addition to bringing back Lavonte David — the Bucs are likely turning their attention to the upcoming NFL Draft.
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